Community Partnership to dissolve, but mission continues

Friday

May 17, 2013 at 11:00 AM

By Ashley Bergner Newton Kansan

Although the Harvey County Community Partnership is going away, many of the organization's services will live on through other agencies.

The board of directors for the Harvey County Community Partnership announced the 501(c)(3) non-profit organization’s dissolution will be effective June 30. Paperwork for the intent to dissolve was mailed to the Kansas Secretary of State’s office at the end of March. The partnership no longer has regular office hours and has closed its public phone number.

The HCCP formerly worked to support youth, children and families in Harvey County through school, family and community programs/interactions.

"Our board saw the forward movement in our community with all our wonderful service oriented non-profits, and so we have worked together with those organizations to wrap our programs into the work of non-profits whose missions match our own," said Beth Tuszynski, HCCP's contracted administrative consultant.

Programs administered by the partnership are now in the process of being integrated under various local non-profits and educational entities. The Drug-Free Youth Coalition will be facilitated by Mirror Inc., and parenting classes that were offered by HCCP at the Harvey County Detention Center will now be administered by Heart to Heart Child Advocacy Center. The partnership also is working with staff at Cooper Early Education Center to continue parenting classes for the general community over the next school year, depending on funding for those classes.

HCCP’s Diversity Task Force will not continue as it was prior to the dissolution process. However, Bethel College does plan to continue programming for Martin Luther King Jr. Day, as well as present other diversity and cultural programs throughout the year. Additionally, there is a group beginning to form under leadership from Shalom Mennonite Church and others whose aim is to focus on race relations in the county.

Other HCCP assets are being dispersed to Health Ministries, the Newton homeless shelter and Newton Community Childcare.

"We're very proud of the work we've accomplished and that the work will continue and grow from here," Tuszynski said. "HCCP may be dissolving as an organization, but our work and programs continue on."

One of the services that is continuing on is the Harvey County Resource Council, a collaborative group of local service and educational agencies formerly administered under HCCP.

"Everybody said, this is a valuable time for us to meet, and we'd like to keep this structure," said Cathy Anderson, the Resource Council's immediate past chair and director of Trinity Heights Respite Care. "... It's just a way for us to help our clients and learn where to send them for resources we don't provide."

The group will continue to meet at Newton Public Library, generally from noon to 1 p.m. on the first Thursday of each month. Planned activities for the group include training for small agencies that might not otherwise have the time or funds for these types of sessions; updates from local agencies on events and programs; and networking between agencies.

For more information on the Resource Council, contact co-chairs Mary Spires with the Harvey County RSVP program, 284-6881, and Marianne Eichelberger with the Newton Public Library, 283-2890.